Apr
14
2005
Dove Moisture Bar Bausch & Lomb multi-purpose solution Head & Shoulders Shampoo Pepcid AC Garnier Fructis Celine Dion Perfume Covergirl Outlast Liquid Makeup John Frieda in your choice of colors
Free Samples
Monthly Archives
Monthly Archives for April 2005.
How Can Banks Afford to Give You Miles, Rebates, and Premium Services?
Apr
14
2005
A piece in yesterday’s StartupJournal explained credit card interchange fees. Interchange fees, what credit card companies charge merchants when you use your card, average 1.75% for Visa and Mastercard and 2.4% for American Express. Larger merchants, naturally, negotiate lower feels than mom and pop businesses, but those percentages are the average. If Chase, which issues the United Visa, pays United 1.25 cents per mile and awards a mile per dollar spent on the card then they’re making half a cent on each dollar transaction. That half cent, plus any annual fee, funds their operations and any additional perks that come with the card. It also turns out that which prestige level card you use may now play a part in determining what the merchant gets charged. If you’re using a ‘premium’ Visa (such as Signature…
United Award Discount to Japan and Taiwan
Apr
14
2005
United is offering discounted award travel to Nagoya or Taipei via Nagoya. Ticket by June 30 and travel between April 28 and September 15. Roundtrip between North America and Nagoya or Taipei Economy Saver Award was 60,000 miles Now only 44,000 miles Business Saver Award was 90,000 miles Now only 70,000 miles First Class Saver Award was 120,000 miles Now only 100,000 miles
When it ALMOST makes sense to pay the higher mileage award level for a flight
Apr
13
2005
Joel Widzer claimed a premium level first class award on a domestic flight from LA to Dallas. While that strikes me as a little crazy for a midcon flight, I can’t criticize him too much. For the very first time I recently claimed a premium first class award on a domestic flight. It was a last-minute transcon, I was paying out of my own pocket, and the flight would have cost about $1500 in coach. Plus I knew I wouldn’t get an upgrade. I had to fly on one specific return flight, and there was only one first class seat left for sale. Claiming the premium award allowed me to pull a seat from revenue inventory and take that last first class seat. Still, it was a questionable use of miles defensible only based on…
Best and Worst Burger
Apr
13
2005
One of the worst cheeseburgers I ever ate was onboard a United Airlines flight to San Francisco when it made me sick. For awhile in 2001 that became the standard lunch offering on first class transcontinental flights. Occasionally it was edible, but flight attendants had a hard time preparing it and more often than not the bun was served rock hard. It was supposed to be a ‘gourmet’ burger but it just wasn’t. I’ve long grilled my own burgers with a pat of butter inside the patty. It keeps the burger moist and juicy even if I overcook the meat. But Tyler Cowen offers an idea that I hadn’t thought of myself: stuff it with blue cheese as well. Yum! As for me, I’d add some mushrooms and grilled onions and that might be the…
Amtrak Eliminating Unreserved Service in the Northeast
Amtrak is moving to reserved service only across most Northeast trains effective April 25. Members holding award tickets for unreserved trains can call Amtrak Guest Rewards customer service at 1-800-307-5000 to exchange the award for a reserved ticket for no additional points.
I was going to write…
Apr
11
2005
But I’m sick and most of what comes out of my keystrokes makes little sense. See you tomorrow!
A Gratis Networks Offer NOT Worth Doing
Apr
11
2005
The free iPods folks are offering a free I love Free iPods.com t-shirt when you complete one of their marketing offers. No referrals are required for this one, but you do need to do an offer youself. Frankly not worth it. I’ll save doing offers myself for the offers I do want, like the free Playstation Portable or the free digital camera.
Two articles on tipping
Apr
10
2005
Joel Widzer thinks tipping should be quid pro quo for service. Tyler Cowen points out that this isn’t how tipping generally functions. Apparently there is generally “little relationship between quality of waiter service and size of tip,” tips go up in sunny weather, and waitresses (but not waiters) can increase their tips by drawing a smiley face on the check. Joel’s advice makes intuitive sense to me, but clearly doesn’t mesh with existing norms and customs. In fact, why should Joel’s advice work at all — making it clear to a service person that they’ll be rewarded with a tip? What’s the enforcement mechanism? Once good service has been rendered, why does the strategic tipper need to follow through at all, unless there’s an expectation of iterative interactions? When tipping comes after service, why do…
100 Free American Airlines Miles
Apr
10
2005
Points.com is giving away 15,000 American miles each day, but perhaps more importantly you get 100 miles just for entering. You need to signup for a free Points.com account to enter, or if you’re already a member you can simply sign in for the points. Points.com has unveiled their new interface, and while it appears slick and streamlined there’s no new functionality that I’m going to find personally useful. What’s more, they’ve increased their fees to $10/month for a premium account!
